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Starlover
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Are the cosmological constant and the universal constant essentially the same?
Wikipedia lists c (speed of light), G (gravitational constant; not to be confused with cosmological constant) and h, ħ resp. (Planck constant) as universal constants; others as constants of their related fields. However, the cosmological constant, Hubble factor resp., aren't listed at all.Starlover said:Thank you for replying, DaleSpam. I seem to see "universal constant" used interchangeably with "cosmological constant." That's why I wonder if they're the same thing. The best I can figure out, is that a "universal constant" is any constant in the universe (such as the invariance of the speed of light), and that Einstein's "cosmological constant" is simply one of these universal constants. But I'm not sure if the two are actually the same thing, or if the Einstein's cosmological constant is simply one of many different "universal constants." :)
You can find further interesting aspects and discussions on the cosmological constant searching PF here.Starlover said:Fresh_42, I think your answer helped me figure things out. I think the answer to my question is that Einstein's Cosmological Constant is not a "universal constant" (like the speed of light) because the Cosmological Constant was proven untrue when the universe was shown to be expanding. Thank you, everybody, for your help! :)Starlover
Starlover said:the Cosmological Constant was proven untrue when the universe was shown to be expanding.
Cosmological and universal constants are physical quantities that are believed to be fixed and unchanging throughout the universe. They describe fundamental properties of the universe, such as the speed of light, the strength of gravity, and the amount of dark energy.
There is ongoing debate among scientists about whether cosmological and universal constants are the same. Some theories suggest that they are interchangeable and that there is a deeper underlying connection between them. However, there is currently no definitive answer.
One piece of evidence for the idea that cosmological and universal constants are the same is the anthropic principle, which suggests that the fundamental properties of the universe are fine-tuned to allow for the existence of life. This could imply a deeper connection between these constants.
Some scientists argue that there is no theoretical basis for assuming that cosmological and universal constants should be the same. Additionally, there is currently no experimental evidence to definitively support this idea.
If it is found that cosmological and universal constants are the same, it could have significant implications for our understanding of the fundamental laws of nature and the origins of the universe. It could also potentially lead to new breakthroughs in physics and cosmology.